Action alert for the protection of the popular indigenous peoples Social minga for life, territory, autonomy, and sovereignty which includes the regional indigenous council of caldas (cridec), valley regional indigenous organization in cauca (orivac) association of the valley of pacific region (indigenous councils aciva rp), regional indigenous organization of quindio (oriquin) risaralda regional indigenous council (crires) and association of indigenous embera wounaan katío chamí; tule choco department (asorewa) and regional indigenous organization of casanare (oric).
Mr. JORGE ARMANDO OTALORA GÓMEZ
National Ombudsman
Bogotá,
Mrs. PATRICIA LUNA PAREDES
The Office of the Ombudsman for Indigenous and Other Ethnic Minorities
Bogotá,
Mr. JORGE ENRIQUE CALERO CHACÓN
Deputy Ombudsman for the Risk Assessment of Civilians and Armed Conflict
Ombudsman
Bogotá
Mr. ANDRÉS GONZÁLEZ
United Nations Program for Development (UNDP)
Bogotá
Mrs. SILKE GATERMAN
Human Rights Officer
Office of the High Commissioner of the United Nations
For Human Rights
Bogotá
Mrs. CYBELE HAUPERT
Human Rights Officer
Office of the High Commissioner of the United Nations
For Human Rights
Bogotá
Action alert for the protection of the popular indigenous peoples Social minga for life, territory, autonomy, and sovereignty which includes the regional indigenous council of caldas (cridec), valley regional indigenous organization in cauca (orivac) association of the valley of pacific region (indigenous councils aciva rp), regional indigenous organization of quindio (oriquin) risaralda regional indigenous council (crires) and association of indigenous embera wounaan katío chamí; tule choco department (asorewa) and regional indigenous organization of casanare (oric).
Dear Officials:
This letter is written with the intent to ALERT your office in regards to the decision of the Indigenous Peoples of Colombia, and in particular those who are dispatching this alert, to participate in the popular indigenous social Minga for life, territory, autonomy and sovereignty convened by the National Indigenous Organization of Colombia (ONIC) and its 44 affiliated organizations around the country.
The participation of these organizations and Indigenous Peoples in the departments of Caldas, Valle del Cauca and Risaralda will focus on the points that we will further reference:
Department Municipality Mobilization Point Organization
Caldas Irra Via entre Medellin et Irra CRIDEC
Valle del Cauca Buenaventura La Delfina, km 72, via Cali ORIVAC Y ACIVA
Risaralda La Virgina Remolinos ORIQUIN, CRIR,ASOREWA
Casanare Yopal ORIC
It is of vital importance for the Ombusdman pursant to its constitucional and legally established mandates to generate the necessaary gurantees for the safety and protection of the participants in the social Minga as accorded to their right to participate in peacful mobilization.
BACKGROUND
On several occasions the Indigenous Peoples of Colombia, have been forced to engage in activities to stand up for and obtain our rights. When President Juan Manuel Santos became President of the Republic, and made his symbolic tenure in the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta, we trusted his word and commitment to a new mandate for Indigenous Peoples to care take the four sacred gifts (Tuma): water, land, food, and governance. After which the President and the government has had to comply with various judicial decisions in which they were ordered to consult on public policy with prominent Indigenous groups on grounds of spiritual and legal requirements. As a result President Santos chose to meet with Indigenous Peoples and activate several of the National Coalitions such as the Permanent Bureau for Cooperation with the Indigenous Peoples and Organizations
Thus, Indigenous Peoples were ready to engage in structural proposals that are filed with a variety of government entities in regards to human rights, peace, territory, autonomy, and identity which continue to be in the forefront of agenda. However, other circumstances emerged by way of decrees derived by the constitutional court as a result of Judgment T-025 in 2004, and especially Decree 004 in 2009 which caused the physical and cultural extermination of at least 34 Indigenous Peoples which has led us to adhere to our mission of defending our territories and life in all of its dimensions.
Furthermore, we have placed a number of issues on the table and have demonstrated our capacity for dialogue, interaction, creation and coordination of proposals, and in an act of brotherhood and solidarity with non-indigenous victims of Colombia's armed conflict , we put forward a victims bill for the salvation of all in front of Congress ( which is now Act 1448 , 2011) . None of this was easy; we were faced with multiple obstacles that ranged from legalities, officials who did not understand our demands, budgetary constraints, and delays in performance, with an end result in a lack of political will to assume and be responsible for their commitments. We still persisted in our dialogue until the end. We understood that it was more valuable to engage in peer pressure than in a war of economic interests, and in lieu of defending our very lives. In any case, the government’s ability to engage in and model any types of advances and agreeable agreements of public, national, and international scenarios was nonexistent.
Worse, while Indigenous Peoples and the national government were developing the necessary political dialogue, the violation of our human rights, socio-political violence, armed conflict, territorial grabs, and attacks on our rights persisted and increased.
We stuck with the process of dialogue until the situation became unsustainable. After a few months of dialogue with the government and putting forward 96 agreements contained in Annex IV of the National Development Plan, the lack of political will to deliver comprehensive management of our systems , institutional apathy, and troublesome actions were directed at the Indigenous movement and it became evident that this was an intentional strategy of the national government . As a result of these actions, and acting on the sentiment of our Peoples and leaders, we decided to convene the Popular Indigenous social Minga for life, territory, autonomy and sovereignty based on five closely related structural issues:
1. Human rights, armed conflicts and peace
2. Territory
3. Colombian mining and energy policies
4. Colombian Agricultural and Economic Policy
5. Legal and Administrative Policy in regards to Autonomy
SUBMISSION
Initiate actions to guarantee the right to life, humane treatment, personal liberty, autonomy , identity, and free movement of Indigenous peoples of the Regional Indigenous Council of Caldas (CRIDEC), Valley Regional Indigenous Organization in Cauca (ORIVAC) Association of the Valley of Pacific Region (Indigenous Councils ACIVA RP), Regional Indigenous Organization of Quindio (ORIQUIN) Risaralda Regional Indigenous Council (CRIRES) and Association of Indigenous Embera Wounaan Katío Chamí; Tule Choco Department (ASOREWA) and Regional Indigenous Organization of Casanare (ORIC).
Provide for the permanent presence of the Ombudsman in areas of concentration, ensure special protection to those involved in the Popular Indigenous social Minga for life, territory, autonomy and sovereignty, prevent the violation of rights, use of excessive force, restriction of the right to mobilization that are headed by the armed forces or any other governmental organizations and institutions.
We call for your department to alert the following civil authorities, police, and military about this situation: Attorney General's Office, the Presidential Program for Strategy and Action Development for Integral Indigenous Peoples Development in Colombia, Presidential Human Rights, the Vice President of the Republic, Department of Indian and Minority Affairs, Ministry of the Interior, governors of the departments of Caldas, Valle del Cauca and Risaralda, respective municipal mayors and other civil and military authorities in charge of and with jurisdiction in the departments of Caldas, Valle del Cauca and Risaralda.
VIGILANCE
We request that the Colombian State, the international community. human rights organizations, and the general public to adopt preventative measures to protect the life, integrity, mobilization, autonomy, and other rights of Indigenous Peoples in Colombia.
DEMANDS TO COLOMBIA
Provide diligence as a result of our action alert to guarantee the life, physical and cultural integrity of Indigenous Peoples and organizations involved in the Minga.
Activate the early warning system to guarantee the rights to life, humane treatment, personal liberty, autonomy, identity, and free movement of Indigenous Peoples
Sincerely,
National Indigenous Government Authority– ONIC Indigenous Government
and affiliate Organizations
OIA (Antioquia), CRIDEC (Caldas), CRIR (Risaralda), ORIQUIN (Quindío), ORIVAC y ACIVA (Valle del Cauca), CRIC (Cauca), CRIHU (Huila), ASO´UWA (Boyacá, Santander y Norte de Santander), UNIPA, ACIESNA y CAMAWARI (Nariño), ASOREWA y FEDEOREWA (Chocó), CRIT (Tolima), ASOPBARI (Norte de Santander), PUEBLO MUISCA, (Cundinamarca), UNUMA (Meta), CAMAEMKA (Alto Sinú, Córdoba), ASCATIDAR (Arauca), ORIC (Casanare), CRIVI (Vichada), AIPEA, ACITAM, ATICOYA, AZCAITA, OIMA, AZICATCH y ASOAINTAM (Amazonas), CRIOMC y ORUCAPU (Caquetá), ASOCIACIÓN WAYA WAYUU, ORGANIZACIÓN WAYUU ARAURAYU, RESGUARDO DE MAYABANGLOMA, AACIGWASUG, PAINWASHI y YANAMA (La Guajira), OWYBT (Cesar, Magdalena y La Guajira), OIK y PUEBLO YUKPA (Cesar), PUEBLO ETTE ENAKA (CHIMILA) (Magdalena y Cesar), CABILDO MAYOR REGIONAL ZENU (Córdoba y Sucre), CABILDO MAYOR MOKANA (Atlántico) y CABILDO MAYOR EMBERA KATÍO DEL ALTO SAN JORGE (Córdoba).